In Memoriam of Professor Yin An

In Memoriam of Professor Yin An

Epigraph:

Upon hearing the news of Professor Yin An's passing, the world has once again lost a great structural geologist, an elder, and a master. I had intended to compose a poem in the style of Li Shutong's "Farewell," but unfortunately, I could not achieve the desired result. Instead, I write this article to mourn the departing figure of the esteemed master. This is both the best of times, where prosperity competes for attention, and the worst of times, where the greatness of masters is not fully cherished. With this graffiti farewell, I offer my condolences to Professor Yin An.

"Farewell"

Life is like a chapter of farewell,

Bidding adieu to the past, bidding farewell to bygone years;

We, like drifting duckweeds, float through the world;

The Buddha said the world is vast, teeming with countless beings;

All the bustling brilliance fades in an instant, everything is impermanent;

Reunions and partings reside within the depths of the heart;

Amidst myriad worldly splendors and distant clouds, perhaps farewells will be reunited in a different form, separated only by the river of time.

Respected Professor Yin An, your sudden departure resembles the withering of blooming flowers, leaving us deeply saddened and mournful. You were a shining star in the field of geology, an outstanding scholar in the realm of Earth sciences. Your passing has left the entire academic community without an irreplaceable pioneer and leader.

In 2022, at the Geological Society of America Annual Meeting held in Denver, USA, you were awarded the Penrose Medal, the highest honor in the field of geology, in recognition of your exceptional contributions to the field. The Penrose Medal is likened to the Nobel Prize in geology, and as the 93rd recipient, you became the second Chinese geologist to receive this prestigious accolade, following in the footsteps of Professor Kenneth Jinghwa Hsu in 2001. You were also one of the youngest recipients in the history of the award. This honor stands as the highest affirmation of your unparalleled research achievements and pioneering spirit, elevating you to the ranks of the greatest geologists of the past century.

You infused your unique spirit of innovation into various research fields, combining stratigraphy, structural geology, tectonics, geochemistry, geophysics, and planetary science in your observations and original studies. Your in-depth research and dynamic analysis of highly complex regions made profound contributions to our understanding of the formation and deformation of the planetary lithosphere. Through numerous outstanding original contributions, you joined the ranks of the Penrose Medal laureates, becoming a shining star in the field of geology.

You were born in June 1959 in Harbin. In 1978, you entered the Department of Geomechanics at Peking University, and in 1982, you pursued graduate studies under the guidance of the renowned Precambrian geologist Professor Qian Xianglin. In 1983, you self-financed your studies at the University of Southern California, where you studied under the distinguished structural geologist Professor Gregory G. Davis, earning your doctoral degree in 1988. Subsequently, you emerged as the successful candidate among over 80 applicants and were appointed as an Assistant Professor at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). In 1993, you were promoted to Associate Professor, and in 1996, you became a full Professor. You were honored with the Geological Society of America Young Scientist Award in 1994 and the Penrose Medal in 2022, marking significant milestones in your career in geology.

Your early work focused on exploring the mechanical origins and evolutionary movements of low-angle normal faults and thrust systems in North America, as well as the history of metamorphic core complexes and extensional tectonics. However, your most renowned research centered on the tectonic evolution of the Himalayas and the Tibetan Plateau. In recent years, your research interests shifted towards slow earthquake mechanics simulations, early Earth evolution, planetary and icy satellite climates, and geotectonic studies. You have published over 200 papers, cited over 34,500 times, and attained an H-index of 86. You have served as the editor-in-chief of Earth and Planetary Science Letters and Tectonophysics, as well as the associate editor of Geology, Geological Society of America Bulletin, and Journal of Asian Earth Sciences. You have mentored numerous high-quality graduate students, with more than ten of them securing professor positions at renowned universities in the United States. Among them, Paul Kapp of Arizona State University, Brian Horton of the University of Texas at Austin, and Bradley R. Hacker of the University of California, Santa Barbara, have received the Geological Society of America Young Scientist Award or the Norman Levi Bowen Award. Notably, your doctoral student Jessica Watkins was selected as an astronaut in 2017 and is currently working at the International Space Station.

Respected Professor Yin An, you were not only a gem in the field of geology but also a source of pride for Chinese scholars. Your passing fills us with deep sorrow and nostalgia, and your academic achievements will forever be engraved in the annals of geological history. You were an outstanding scholar, mentor, and role model, and your wisdom and dedication will continue to inspire future generations in their pursuit of excellence. Your brilliance is enough to illuminate our path forward, and your academic legacy will continue to flourish in the field of geology.

In your name, we will forge ahead and dedicate our efforts to the advancement of geology. Professor Yin An, may you rest in peace.

With sincere wishes for peace and well-being.